The Courtship of Haruno Sakura
by kaoricatcher
Summary: Sasuke came full circle. Redemption, forgiveness, desire, loneliness, knowledge, fulfillment, peace, acceptance and ultimately love brought him back home. He stepped through the large green gates of Konoha for the first time since…well, (besides the time the whole moon was falling all over the place debacle), two years ago and it felt great.
1. Forest for the Trees

You can't see the forest for the trees. It's an expression that comes to mind a lot to Sasuke while he journeyed around the world. He noticed when people hyper focus on an issue, they'd often miss the bigger picture or the main issue. The bigger issue could make fixing the small issue a moot point. Looking at the bigger picture or in his case, the world, helped him see that there was more to life than just vengeance or redemption. It helped him see there was more to life available to him and more he can do for the world.

He came full circle. Redemption, forgiveness, desire, loneliness, knowledge, fulfillment, peace, acceptance and ultimately love brought him back home. He stepped through the large green gates of Konoha for the first time since…well, (besides the time the whole moon was falling all over the place debacle), two years ago and it felt great.

"Oh Sasuke! Ya jerk, you missed my wedding!" A bright orange clad Naruto bounded towards him. His face was scrunched up and his eyes were squinted so close that you can barely see his blue eyes. He quickly opened them and smiled. His mock anger would of had more of an effect if he wasn't so excitedly patting his good friend's shoulders.

"Naruto." Replied Sasuke, grinning. He won't lie. He was happy to see him too. His friend beamed at him and berated him for what he missed. "Hinata was so pretty. There was so much cake! Guy sensei got so drunk!" Naruto continued on, hands waving all over the place. They chatted, mainly Naruto talked and Sasuke listened, as they walked towards the main tower, towards Hidden Leaf's Sixth Hokage Kakashi.

"Heyyyyy." Naruto whispered. His hand practically hitting Sasuke in the face when he suddenly turned towards him. "Does Sakura know you planned on coming back today or do you only write me love letters."

Sasuke pushed Naruto's hand away from his face and glared at his friend. "I don't write love letters…to idiots." He responded. He ignored the smirk Naruto threw his way.

Sasuke huffed. _Love letters._ When did that start? He could hardly call them love letters. He doesn't remember when he sent the first letter but he remembered what he wrote. It was cheesy as hell. He face palmed mentally just thinking about it.

He thought of Sakura a lot. His mind soon started to accumulate all the different things he wanted and could say to her. He thought of what they could do and wondered if she would even want to still. She clearly took care of things when she was kidnapped. He arrived in time to watch her tidy things up. He still kicked those bastards' asses afterward not because Sakura didn't do a good job but because those guys deserved another beating. How dare they touch her!

Eventually, all his thoughts became overflowing (even for his mind). He thought _to hell with it_ and sent the first thing on his mind that moment. "I saw Sakura trees today. They were in full bloom. They smelled lovely. See you, S."

His predicament wasn't that he didn't know what to say or do, it was he had so many things he wanted to _say_ and _do._ It left him utterly exhausted.

"I can hear you overthink Sasuke. Stop it!" Naruto yelled. He ran his hands through his mess of blond hair.

"Don't listen in on my thoughts. We went over this." Sasuke huffed, annoyed and exasperated.

"I don't need telepathy to hear what's going on in your head." Although he did hear him and he quickly shut down their telepathic connection. Besides, those who knew Sasuke well enough could read the subtle changes in his body language and could define what it meant. The blond could tell by the slight furrow of brow, the minuscule quirk of his lips, the forward head tilt. The _huffing_.

"Just tell her you love her and kiss her. Done."

Sasuke huffed and Naruto nearly keeled over in laughter but he held back. He loved flustering his friend. Payback's a bitch.

"I won a bet against Sakura-chan and she had to show me one of those letters." Naruto doesn't miss the brief glance Sasuke gave in his direction.

"You talk a lot about trees."

Sasuke swears. Really, out of all the letters he could of read and she shares that one? Sasuke watched as his friend doubled over in laughter. _He's clearly not holding back,_ Sasuke thought. They made it to Kakashi's office and stopped outside the door. Naruto looked at Sasuke and without warning brought his face inches away from his face. _The guys doesn't know personal space._

 _I'll tell you a secret._ Naruto voiced, telepathically. _She carries that letter with her wherever she goes._

Sasuke didn't have time to react because Naruto quickly kicked the door opened making a loud bang and yelled, "Kakashi! The bastard is back!"

Sasuke smiled and walked in.


	2. When it Rains it Pours

Thank you for your kudos, reviews, and interest in this story! I'm glad it's bringing some smiles to people. Hope you enjoy the second chapter.

***This chapter contains some *spoilers* from the light novels, specifically Sakura Hiden: Thoughts of Love and Longing, Riding upon the Spring Breeze. Since it is still being translated, I took what I know to have happened in the novel and used it as a resource for the characters psyche. The plots I created in this story here on out is not from the novel. The novels are also considered , the awesome OrganicDinosaur does the translating for the novel. (Please support by buying the book once it's available in your country. Until then, enjoy. You can check it out on the following link.)

r/Naruto/wiki/novels#wiki_sakura_hiden.3A_thoughts_of_love_and_longing.2C_riding_upon_a_spring_breeze

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. Mr. Masashi Kishimoto et al owns it.

Kakashi Hatate, The Sixth Hokage of the Village of the Hidden Leaf, son of the White Fang, and proud teacher to the Heroes of Legend sat at his desk in the office of the Hokage. He gazed happily at the retreating backs of Naruto and Sasuke. He marveled at the growth of his students. Sasuke had just returned home but his heart came back long before now. Naruto had the acknowledgement of the whole village and was on his way to being the next Hokage. Sakura had achieved the Strength of Hundred Seals. Her strength rivaled the previous Hokage. She was also an accomplished medical-nin and spearheaded the new Children's Mental Health Clinic.

Kakashi spun in his chair. He was concerned about Sakura lately. The new Anbu executives insisted on having her. Kakashi wasn't surprised by their request. Sakura discovered a certain organization lead by a man name Kido within Anbu and took that man down. She joined Anbu and would secretly report anything odd within the organization directly to him. He didn't doubt her abilities or her loyalties, but the amount of pressure from this type of mission can get to anyone. Maybe Sasuke being back can alleviate some of that pressure. He chuckled to himself.

When it rains it pours. Sasuke thought this expression was only used for misfortunes. Unfortunately, this expression was what came to mind to best describe his current situation, surrounded and pampered by the people from his village.

"Oh! The Uchiha brat is back!"

"Look! Another one of the Heroes of Legend!"

"You got so tall!"

"Hey! Weren't you trying to destroy the village? Why the hell are you back? Ah just kidding."

"Shut up! He saved the world in the end didn't he?"

"Young people these days."

What started as a tentative hello soon became a hail storm of greetings. Shy little kids with star struck eyes and older people approached him with determined vigor. He travelled alone for so long so he was a little overwhelmed, but the attention was nonetheless welcomed.

"You know you love this." Naruto stated, nudging him with his elbow. "Not nearly as bad as you think right?"

Sasuke responded with a sigh. Acceptance. It was something he still had to remind himself to do. Accept who he was in the past and who he has become now. It was a daily struggle but that didn't mean he wasn't at peace. Still, a part of him felt it would of been better if people hated him.

"Stay away from him. You never know if he'd turn on the village again."

"Who said that?" Naruto shouted, his hands fisted. "Come out here and say it to his ugly and my handsome face!"

"It's fine." Sasuke breathed out. Sasuke didn't care what people said about him. People can change. He was living proof.

"But their lives were saved by me and you!" Naruto said, frustrated.

Sasuke smirked at his friend. After his battle with Naruto, he came to the conclusion he would always protect his home and village. He didn't have to be acknowledged as a hero to do so.

"The village has acknowledged both of you. You're one of the 'Heroes of Legend', Sasuke. Some people are still stuck in the past and are blinded by hate." Sasuke jerked his head up and peered into the eyes of Iruka, his old academy teacher. The man looked older but only around his eyes.

"It seemed just like yesterday that you young kids were graduating from the academy." Sasuke changed his mind, Iruka's an old man.

"Oh! Iruka-sensei!"

Sasuke observed as his friend and old sensei chatted. Of course it would end on ramen.

"Join us. It'll be my treat welcoming you back to the village." Iruka said, gently. He put a hand on Sasuke's shoulder before he walked off. Sasuke couldn't hold back a small smile.

"Holy sh—Sasuke there's something wrong with your face! You're smiling!" Naruto teased.

They fell into a companionable silence as they walked. Sasuke catalogued the different changes in the village. His mind directed his thoughts to Sakura. He thought back to what Kakashi said before he left his office. "She's at the training grounds with the kids from the clinic. There's something you should know…" Sasuke furrowed his brow.

Sasuke didn't expect Kakashi to tell Naruto and him that Sakura was working undercover within Anbu. Sasuke felt extremely uncomfortable about the situation. He didn't expect her to tell him about Anbu through their correspondence, but did her lack of communication about her struggles come from not wanting him to worry? Or was it something else entirely? In addition to her other responsibilities, Sasuke had no idea how she functioned day to day. He huffed with frustration.

"Sakura had cut back on her work recently. I didn't expect it to be because she had a new job." Naruto stated, pulling Sasuke back from his thoughts. "She was so busy when 'The Children's Mental Healthcare Clinic' was first established. Then other villages wanted to adapt the program so she had to travel a lot."

The clinic wasn't new news to Sasuke. Sakura had talked about her clinic in her letters. He also visited one of these clinics during his travels. Many children were benefiting from Sakura's vision.

"Suna was the first to adapt and add such a department to their hospital. She went over there to help them adapt the program.

"It was during her trip to Suna that she got kidnapped right?" Sasuke asked.

"Yeah, but she took care of the situation and also defeated Kido." Naruto replied.

"I know, I saw her take him down."

"Which is odd because you told us to take care of it, but you still showed up. Don't say you didn't because the whole place was on fire from your Fireball Technique"

"They took her!"

Naruto was surprised at how much Sasuke's words were laced with emotion. It was another testament at how much they have all grown the last couple years. Naruto wondered about his two precious friends and where they now stood with each other.

"She didn't say anything about seeing you."

"I left before she saw me."

"Why didn't you go talk to her?"

"I don't think she wanted to see me."

Sasuke had arrived in the forest near the end of Sakura's battle with Kido. He used his Great Fireball Technique and finished off the rest of Kido's goons. At the end, Sakura stood surrounded by broken debris and cracked earth. His fire did nothing more then accentuate her power and beauty. For a moment it was all he could do not to run over like Naruto to a ramen stand. He stopped himself because he saw something from Sakura that surprised him. Shame.

"Have you guys talked about this?" Naruto looked over at Sasuke. If his personal experience with Hinata had taught him anything, it was communication was crucial and could be a matter of life and death—literally in his case.

"I plan on having that conversation with her soon."

They travelled the rest of the way to the training grounds in silence. Once they arrived, his eyes searched desperately for her. He found her high on a cliff surrounded by children and other medical staff. Sasuke let out a breath he didn't know he was holding.

"We going to talk to her or you're going to just look at her all day." Naruto started to laugh. He smacked Sasuke's back with his hand. Sasuke responded with a glare. Sasuke could feel his face getting warmer.

"Shut up." Sasuke started to walk off. He was perfectly fine. It wasn't like he never spoke with Sakura before. It was just having this loud idiot of a friend there to see him reunite with his…with Sakura that had him feeling out of sorts.

Laughter brought their attention back to Sakura. The kids were hang-gliding off the cliff.

"Taking a leap of faith and overcoming fear." Naruto explained. "Hey Sakura! Over here!" He waved his arms excitedly.

"Naruto? Oh! Sasuke-kun?!" Sakura beamed and smiled at them.

Sasuke reminded himself to breath. He ignored the knowing look on Naruto's face.

"One sec!" They watched as Sakura spoke with the other medical advisors. The kids who waited patiently for their turn peered over the cliff to look at Naruto and him. More than a few staff members also looked.

"K! I'm coming down!" Sakura took a hand-glider and jumped off the cliff without warning. Her hair billowed in the wind as she floated down.

Sasuke's mouth parted open slightly, his body moved on its own and his mind would catch up later to consent its actions. He moved directly to where Sakura would land with his speed and caught her.

"Sasuke…kun?" Glider forgotten, Sakura dropped it to the ground. It landed with a soft thud.

Sasuke registered Naruto offering his help to the people on the cliff in the back of his mind but Sasuke's main focus was on the woman in his arms.

"I'm home…Sakura."


	3. A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words

Oh wow. You guys are awesome. Thank you **butterfly9070, Blissangel91494, lavlicekian, KassfromVenus, iam schadenfruede, kimrb, usagyind, nightcall16, guest, guest,** and **guest** for your reviews. I had family visit from out of town so I'm posting this two days later than I planned on. It's longer and there's an action sequence! Please enjoy and don't hesitate to let me know what you think.

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. Mr. Masashi Kishimotoet al owns it.

A picture is worth a thousand words. This concept served Sasuke well especially during his time away from Hidden Leaf. Ninjas were trained to be perceptive. The ability to read a person could be matters of life or death. However, everything was up in the air when it came to matters of love.

He straightened his tie and walked into the venue. Today was the engagement party for Shikamaru and Temari. Friends, family, the Kages, and other dignitaries alike mingled. Due to Shikamaru's position in the Shinobi Union and his general kindness. Sasuke wasn't surprised at the amount of people attending. Their marriage was also political. Temari was the older sister of the current Kazekage, Gaara. It was amusing to watch Shikamaru interact with everyone.

"Thank you for coming." Tamari smiled. Although, he didn't know her very well he could tell she was someone that was genuine.

"It's good to see you." Shikamaru stated, pleased. "Too bad we can't all just have a simple dinner." Temari responded to the statement with a jab to the ribs. Shikamaru grinned sheepishly at her.

"Hey! Shikamaru!" Naruto's boisterous voice could probably be heard from Suna itself. He put his arms around the smiling couple. Sasuke moved aside to give them more room.

"Hi Sasuke-kun." Sasuke turned to see Hinata walk towards him. Hinata was calm water to the roaring wind that was Naruto, but her eyes contain the same fire he saw in his friend. Naruto's letter had contained a lot of things about the woman standing in front of him. Perhaps he should give them to her.

"Congratulations to you too, Hinata."

"Thank you. We loved the gift you sent us." Hinata glanced at Naruto and smiled. "He was really happy you wrote back." Sasuke cleared his throat. He was happy his friend found someone he really cared about.

"Hey Hinata! You coming over? Oh hey Sasuke!" Naruto yelled, unabashed.

"See you later Sasuke-kun. You should come over for dinner soon."

As he made his way across the reception hall, various people approached him. When he saw the Raikage, to his chagrin, there was tension for everyone around them. The story of how the Raikage sacrificed an arm to Sasuke's Amaterasu was well know in some circles, circles that were in attendance tonight.

"Looks like we're even." He gave a pointed look to Sasuke's arm. "But you're welcome to try at my other arm." It was silent around them. After a moment, the Raikage burst out with a loud laugh and slapped Sasuke's back with a loud thump. It would be a lie if he wasn't a little relieved when the Raikage moved in toward Shikamaru and Temari.

He walked toward the bar and looked around again for Sakura. It had been two weeks since he came back and to his frustration he had hardly seen her. They planned on meeting at this engagement party.

"Sasuke Uchiha." Sasuke looked at the man standing by the bar. The man was similar in height to him but where Sasuke was lean this guy was bulky. He had short brown hair, which was spiked. His fingernails were clean but his hands were rough and calloused. He had the appearance of someone who practiced being relaxed but was always alert. He had stubble and a flashy grin. A woman approached them and grabbed one of the man's upper arms, showing off his biceps.

"I know you! Well I guess I know of you. I was a year behind you in the academy. Huge fan of yours…That is until you left the village and became a missing-nin and caused a lot of trouble for the village, but that's all in the past." The man flashed Sasuke a huge grin. Sasuke was surprised the guy wasn't panting for breath. "My name is Sen Nakamura. What's yours. Er. I guess I already know your name. Anyhow, nice to meet you." Sen reached his hand out to Sasuke.

"Nice to meet you." Sasuke responded, reaching to shake Sen's hand. The handshake was quick but unnecessarily firm.

"Sasuke-kun! Sorry. Were you waiting long?" Sakura's voice rang out. Both men looked toward her, seeing her quickened his heart and cleared his mind. She wore a simple v-neck black dress that gathered at her waist and dipped low in the front. His eyes met hers and he watched happily as her checks flushed a light pink.

"Hi" Sasuke said, cracking a small smile when she reached him.

"Hi back." Her hands brushed against his briefly. He stared unrepentantly into her green eyes.

"Hey Sakura." Sen greeted, interrupting Sasuke's moment of indulgence.

"Hey Sen." Sakura replied. "Sorry, didn't see you for a moment there."

"That's alright. As long as you do when it matters." Sen winked at her. "I better go. The lady here needs a dance."

"And here I thought you forgot about me." The woman responded, still clutching Sen's arm. Sen gave a small wave at Sasuke.

Sasuke nodded and turned to the bartender. He noticed out of the corner of his eye Sen placing a hand on Sakura's shoulder and whispering close to her ear before he walked off. Sakura smiled and nodded. Sasuke furrowed his brow. Sakura walked next to him and gave him a dazzling smile. His fingers shamelessly lingered on hers when he passed her drink to her. They stood a moment in comfortable silence.

"Hey Sasuke! Sakura! Get over here!" Naruto called out, in mock whisper. Only Naruto could pass off "whispering" across so many people and still be heard clearly. There were two empty seats next to Naruto at the table full their friends. The light dimmed and he glanced at Sakura. They moved together towards one of their most cherished friend.

They felt a surge of chakra and the room darkened completely. Sasuke activated his Sharigan and he felt Sakura channel her chakra throughout her body. They moved in tandem towards the figure approaching the Raikage arriving in time for Sasuke to deflect and grab ahold of the person's arm while Sakura placed her chakra sharpened hand next to the person's throat. He sensed Naruto appear behind the person's back. The light switched back on and revealed a civilian woman dressed in an evening gown.

"What are you doing? Let go!" The woman cried out. She had a syringe in her hand pointed at the Raikage. She stared at it in disbelief.

Naruto's eyes met Sasuke and Sakura. Anyone with training could feel the strong killing intent that was coming from the woman just a moment ago. It was gone now and she stood there scared and confused, holding the syringe. The guards arrived and took ahold of the her. She burst into tears and struggled against them as they pried the syringe out of her hand.

"I'll let you guys take care of this." The Raikage said, walking away. He scratched at his neck and his disgruntled assistant, Mabui and right hand man, Darui followed after him. Darui glanced back at them in acknowledgement before leaving.

Shikamaru took control of the situation and shifted the troubled guests' attention to him and Temari. Kakashi proposed a toast at the couple. The stress of the incident was soon forgotten, but it left everyone exhausted.

"Hey. You think we can go to ramen after this?" Naruto asked, he looked around the table at his friends eagerly. Sasuke and Sakura sat quietly next to him.

"Sakura, did you get hurt just now? You look pale." Ino looked at Sakura, concerned.

"Hm? No. I'm fine." Sakura replied, distractedly. The rest of the evening went by calmly but Sasuke noticed Sakura becoming more and more quiet. There was no reaction when everyone caved in to Naruto's desire for ramen for the after party.

"I think I'm going to head home. I'll join you guys next time." Sakura gave a reassuring smile to everyone. Sasuke noticed more than a few concerned looks.

"I'll walk you home." Sasuke said, standing up. "Should I save you seat at Ichiraku?" Naruto asked.

"Sure." He replied. If anyone noticed Sasuke putting a hand on Sakura's back they didn't say anything. They were halfway out the door when they heard Naruto yell, "Did you see that?! His _hand_!"

"Did Naruto say something just now?"

"No." Sakura tilted her head to the side and smirked at him. They walked in enjoyable silence, arms brushing more than once. She took a deep breath and slowly let it out.

"Sasuke-kun?"

"Hm?"

"That business with Kido? Thanks…for being there." She looked up at him and smile. He couldn't help but smile back. They arrived at her apartment and she paused at door.

"I'm sorry." She blurted, her keys slipped out of her hands.

"For what?" He picked up her keys and handed it over.

"I was careless and got kidnapped."

 _Ah. So that was why she had shame in her eyes after fighting Kido_ , Sasuke thought.

"You more than took care of the situation."

"I didn't want you to see me in such a state, but I'm glad you come in the end."

Sasuke took ahold of her and pulled her into his arms. He felt her gasp in surprise and felt her hands slowly wrap around him.

"Sasuke-kun?" Her voice muffled against him. He chuckled and gently pulled back. He tapped her on the forehead.

"Rest. I'll see you tomorrow?" His previous actions were catching up to him and he felt his face warm. She nodded at him and placed a gentle kiss on his cheek. By the time he overcame his shock she had entered her apartment and shut the door.

He walked towards Ichiraku, his hand rubbing the grin plastered on his face.


End file.
